Arresting Spirits
by Fedora Lekaios
Summary: [AU] Chihiro is the new agent specializing in the Spirit Cases, anything dealing with the bizarre and celestial. Her new boss, Yubaba, in hopes of destroying the Spirit Cases, partners her up with no-nonsense Haku. It's hate at first sight...right?
1. Default Chapter

**Arresting Spirits**

**by Fedora Lekaios**

AU (alternate universe)- Chihiro is the new agent specializing in the Spirit Cases, mysteries dealing with the supernatural and the celestial. In hopes of firing Chihiro asap, Yubaba partners her up with no-nonsense Haku Rivers. It's hate at first sight…or is it?

**Chapter One: Real Life**

**##Haku##**

Haku Rivers was boring, to say at the least. He was a strict, no-nonsense man with a schedule calculated down to precise increments of seconds. There were no buts or excuses in his frame of mind, just disapproval and condemnation.

If it weren't for the fact that he was incredibly handsome with his unblemished skin, sea-green pearls for eyes, boyish features, and a well-sculpted figure— well, perhaps one would find him absolutely appalling.

At 5:23 A.M. his eyelids automatically lifted on their own, without the help of the alarm clock, thank you very much. He stood up and did morning stretch exercises for exactly four minutes. Afterwards, he proceeded in turning on the television and listened without much discretion to the weather and if the Yelling Hyenas won the Nacho-ball Tournament last night.

"Ladies and Gents, remember it's gonna be one heck of a soggy day, so bring your umbrellas and rain boots!" the cheerful weather reporter announced, as soon as Haku had disappeared into the bathroom.

Haku entered his stately bathroom with quiet satisfaction, his sea-green eyes scrutinizing the creamy white tiles, the pink shell-shaped sinks, and the perfectly folded towels arranged by color, size, and shape. The maids actually did their jobs right today.

"Today's going to be a good day, I can feel it." He hummed to himself as he got ready for another day at work.

**##Chihiro##**

"Today's gonna be a crappy day, I can feel it." A plain brown-haired young woman grumbled to her reflection in the cereal bowl. Already, the tight knot of apprehension of her first day at a new workplace was giving her the willies.

"What if the new boss hates me? What if my partner hates me? What if everyone thinks I'm a joke for believing in the extraterrestrial? I can't move back to the city, especially after ruining the last case. And above all, I'm to the verge of being completely broke!" Chihiro exclaimed in self-pity as she gazed at her shabby surroundings. Almost everything needed professional scrubbing, polishing, fixing, and mending— everything to the electrical appliances down the squeaky door hinges.

Two ragtag, worn suitcases, which held all her belongings, sat in an unused corner by the door. She had moved to the small, dusty hotel at the edge of town two days ago. Chihiro sighed. She had turned to the field of police enforcement as a ticket to adventure and fame… and all she got was snobbish stares and a bad rep for being late and irresponsible.

…But it wasn't her fault. Lady Luck just didn't seem to like her too much.

Chihiro's plain blue eyes roved to the rusty alarm clock that probably dated back to the prehistoric times. They immediately widened in shock at the current time.

**6:40 A.M.**

"SHIT! I have twenty minutes!" She yelped as she ungracefully dumped her cereal bowl in the moldy sink and turned to the bathroom, bumping into her desk and chest along the way. She hopped from foot to foot from the pain as she brushed her teeth, brushed her tangled hair, put it up in a ponytail, and bolted to her chest.

She groaned at how her favorite black suit looked positively rumpled and creased. Chihiro shoved away the disheartened thoughts and hurriedly put it on, struggling with the small buttons on her white oxford shirt. While pulling up her socks, she glanced at the alarm clock and loudly swore when it read:

**6:47 A.M.**

"I'm gonna be LATE!" she wailed as she grabbed her purse, gray coat, work bag and hastily pushed her throbbing feet into her black heels. She all but wrenched the door from its hinges as she opened it, closed it, and locked it. The room was dark and silent for another minute or so, before Chihiro rushed in and shoved her pager and reading glasses into her purse.

"Damn Mondays!" she muttered under her breath as she once again left her room.

She half jogged, half sprinted to the bus stop while vainly trying to juggle her purse, coat, and work bag. Chihiro almost cried when her reading glasses fell out of her purse and the glass shattered to little pieces.

When she arrived at the bus stop, cradling the broken glasses to her chest, she lifted her head to the sky and silently prayed to God that she wouldn't screw up today. Of all days, today had to go well!

And then, the raindrops came…

"No… please say today is going to be sunshine and butterflies." Chihiro half whispered, half pleaded to the sky.

But the innocent raindrops soon turned into merciless jets of water, completely soaking Chihiro's brown hair and black suit. With a defeated, hollow sigh, Chihiro covered her head with her purse as she waited for the stupid bus.

It came two minutes later, and when Chihiro trudged onto the bus, the bus driver gave her the most pitiful, sympathetic face. Chihiro wished she could just wallop the bus driver with a baseball bat.

"Psh…I don't need charity." She whispered under her breath as she grabbed onto a vacant bus ring and counted the seconds on her wristwatch.

**##Haku##**

**6:15 A.M.**

"Hm… I'm behind schedule by one minute." Haku murmured before he sipped his bland coffee and proceeded in consuming his buttery, syrupy Belgium waffles and fresh fruit salad. One of the hotel's greatest amenities was providing excellent breakfast trays.

Exactly fifteen minutes later, Haku placed the clean tray outside his door, placed his morning newspaper in his suitcase, and walked outside to the parking lot. He casually unlocked his suave, silver Infiniti sedan and entered the car. As he drove out of the parking lot, he decided that he felt charitable today and would buy everyone at the office a cup of steaming Starbucks.

"I am too good." He stated as he glanced at his reflection in the car mirror. There was barely any traffic either, which was extremely rare on busy Yobanuga Street. He smiled complacently as he went through the Starbucks driveway and bought 14 mocha cappuccinos.

With seven minutes to spare, he pedaled his car towards Takudome Building, the home of Tokyo's finest police station.

**##Chihiro## **

"Sssssttttttttooooooooppppppp!" Chihiro screeched at the top of her lungs, abruptly halting the bus. She had been so absorbed in counting the seconds on her watch that she almost missed her stop.

She ignored the disgruntled glances as she pushed her way to the bus doors. When she stepped foot onto the ground, she concluded that since everything went wrong, things could only get better. Chihiro calmly smoothed her jacket and pants, adjusted her bags to a more comfortable position, and with a thumping heart, walked towards the Takudome Building.

She marveled at the swirling doors, the marble floors, the sharp-looking businesspersons carrying expensive suitcases, the gold-plated letters, and the luxurious furnishings. It made her feel even more nervous of her meeting with the new boss. Chihiro walked to the front desk and proudly placed a business card on the smooth counter.

After looking at the card, the secretary looked at Chihiro up and down, from her hair down to her scuffed shoes, and slightly frowned as she said, "Do you have an appointment, miss? With Miss Yubaba?"

"Yes, I do. My name is Chihiro Okimoto. I was newly employed a few days ago and I'm supposed to meet with Miss Yubaba at 7 o'clock sharp. I'm terribly sorry that I'm late—"

The secretary politely held up her hand to silence Chihiro's babbling, gracefully picked up the phone, pressed a few buttons, and said sweetly, "This is Rin, Miss Chihiro Okimoto has an appointment with Miss Yubaba. Shall I send her up?"

After a few moments of nodding and shaking her head, the secretary held her hand over the mouthpiece and said, "Take the elevator up to level 17. That's where Miss Yubaba is. But whatever you do, don't make her angry."

Chihiro's green eyes widened as she inquired, "Why?"

Rin placed the phone back to its cradle before whispering, "She'll chew you up and spit you out if you displease her in any way."

"What do I do?"

"Hm… you don't seem like a bad person, so I'll give you this piece of advice: compliment her son, and she'll eat out of the palm of your hand."

"Are you sure? That's kinda sketchy."

"Well, it's up to you if you believe me or not. Oh, and another piece of advice."

"Yes?"

"Whatever you do, stay away from Agent Haku Rivers, he's her evil henchman. And he's got the personality of a crocodile."

"Haku Rivers? I've heard of that name."

"Yeah, he's also filthy rich and on the cover of every police magazine for cracking tons of cases. It's nice if you have connections with him, but don't get attached, is all I'm saying." Rin said with a lopsided grin.

"Thanks for the advice, but I better go now." Chihiro said with a smile as she pointed at her watch.

"Good luck." Rin replied before greeting the next person in line.

Chihiro politely nodded her head and headed towards the elevator. Already, more and more people were entering the building. Takudome Building was steadily coming alive with morning commotion.

After she pressed the 'up' button, Chihiro cautiously looked around and noticed that everyone looked awfully stern, peeved, and exhausted. There were many people with dark circles under their eyes, a cup of coffee in hand, and an important manila folder or suitcase in the other.

The soft ping of the elevator brought Chihiro back on track as she entered the elegant glass elevator. She squirmed when more and more people shuffled inside the small compartments, squeezing themselves like sardines in a can. Chihiro was pinned between the glass walls and the people, and she couldn't help but groan when the people made room for yet another person.

_I am going to bloody murder the next person that comes in. You'd think these people would have some manners in elevator etiquette._ Chihiro thought darkly. Unbeknownst to her, the last person to enter the elevator was none other than the smirking Haku Rivers.

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**AN:So, how was it? This is my first attempt at a Spirited Away fan fic, so I'm a little doubtful. Please tell me if there are any grammar or spelling mistakes so that I can fix them. **

**Thanks for reading my story!**

**TBC, if ya review! **


	2. Meeting New Faces

**ARRESTING SPIRITS**

Chapter 2

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--Chihiro-- 

Chihiro felt slightly better when people started to get off the elevator. _Finally, some godforsaken space to breath! _she thought, as she shifted herself to a more comfortable position.

Unconsciously, she began to do her most favorite hobby: observing people.

After a few minutes of subtle observation, she noticed that _every_ single person that entered or left the elevator acknowledged the man in the very front with a polite nod or a 'Good morning, Sir'.

_He must be important._ she thought indifferently. Soon, there was no one else on the elevator except him and her. Now that she gave it a second thought, she wondered why no one called him by his name. And above all, why was he carrying so many mocha cappuccinos this early in the morning?

Of course, Chihiro came up with two reasons:

He's some kind of intern and is buying coffee to look really good for his boss. In a nutshell: he's a turd.

He's some kind of boss and is buying coffee to look really good for his employees. In a nutshell: he's a sensitive turd.

_My dear Watson, I do believe he is a turd_. she said to herself, and was somewhat pleased with her simple conclusion of the man. She loved how she labeled complete strangers in a ridiculous manner— it almost made her life tolerable, so to speak.

But Chihiro couldn't help but notice that the man was incredibly hot. Just by looking at his backside, she could tell that this guy worked out big time by the way his muscles rippled every time he made a small movement. Hopefully, he wasn't freakishly deformed or had a huge mole on his nose or something.

That would be most unfortunate.

Now, Chihiro's innocent observation of the man would have continued on, if Haku hadn't abruptly turned around, 14 mocha cappuccinos and all.

Chihiro's reaction was instantaneous as she loudly squeaked and dropped her purse and work bag.

…and of course, her godforsaken reading glasses tumbled out of her purse and stopped dramatically in front of the man's perfectly polished shoe— utterly smashed and misshapen.

_OH MY GOD, I MUST BE THE BIGGEST LOSER IN THE FREAKING WORLD._ Chihiro's conscious screamed and she could have sworn that everyone in a five-mile radius could hear her thumping heart. With blazing red cheeks, she hurriedly shoved her reading glasses into her purse, collected her things with a huff, and stared wide-eyed at the elevator door— fervently wishing that a humongous black hole would just swallow her up and just erase her from existence.

Haku bit his lip to stop himself from laughing aloud. Without thinking, he had turned around because he felt as though someone was boring holes into the back of his head.

People always told him that he had eyes in the back of his head. And perhaps they weren't entirely incorrect when they said that.

Without looking at the disheartened Chihiro, he politely cleared his throat and mumbled, "Having a bad day, eh?"

Chihiro heaved a sigh and quietly replied with a polite 'yes'.

Haku courteously nodded his head; but even though he hated chatting with strangers, he couldn't help but striking a conversation with this one. It was purely based on his gut feeling.

And he always did trust his gut more than his head.

"Bad weather outside, don't you agree?"

"Yeah…"

Haku smiled at the girl's awkwardness. He found it charming the way she chewed her lip in nervousness and how she smelled like Frosted Flakes. He had grown accustomed to the smell of coffee over the years at Takudome, but he sorely missed the smell of old-fashioned milk and cereal.

Chihiro replied softly, "I hate the rain."

"Me too. Hm… I don't think I've ever seen you around. Are you new?"

"Yes. And I'm scared about my new boss."

_Yubaba…_ Haku thought with a grimace. Their relationship was horribly strained but absolutely necessary for the other's survival.

While Haku was busy with his thoughts, Chihiro took a chance by glancing at his face. She was taken aback by his perfectly creamy complexion and sea green pearls for eyes. His slightly long hair framed his heart-shaped face and he was probably the most gorgeous man she had ever seen in her entire life.

_Ok, Chihiro, so you're talking to a man who's prettier than you are. (Don't forget he's important too!) No worries, it's all cool. CHILL! You'll probably never see him again anyways; this building is gigantic!!! Besides, first impressions are essential when dealing with important people. You gotta make the most of this conversation! _

With that in mind, she opened her mouth:

"So you work here?"

All the color in Chihiro's face drained away. She could not believe she just said those four words. Of all the questions she could have asked, she had to pick that one. After turning herself to the wall, she smacked her head with the palm of her hand.

Haku responded with a loud cough, which strangely sounded like a chuckle.

"Why yes, however did you find out?" he replied with mock sarcasm. His beautiful sea-green eyes focusing on Chihiro's ever-reddening face.

Chihiro nervously laughed and replied, "Lucky guess, I suppose."

_Ding!_ The elevator doors gracefully slid open.

_YES, saved by the bell! _Chihiro thought happily as she politely bowed her head and scurried away.

Haku took his time of walking to his office, which happened to be the largest in the building… next to Yubaba's of course. He nodded his head to acknowledge his co-workers and employees and handed out mocha cappuccinos accordingly.

**…Meanwhile…**

Chihiro gasped when she met yet ANOTHER dead end.

_How many hallways does this freaking floor have? s_he thought impatiently as she wandered along.

An employee (an extremely dimwitted-looking guy) had directed her towards a door, saying that it lead to Yubaba. However, when she opened the door, she was met with three hallways. Of course, she didn't think to ask the guy which hallway to take because, well, it's just not _normal_!

So, she decided to walk down the middle hallway…

After twenty minutes of mindlessly walking, she became anxious and frustrated. Why were there no doors to be found? And above all, where were all the employees? After entering the first door (the one that the dimwit had shown her) she hadn't encountered a single person!

Completely flabbergasted, Chihiro abruptly turned around in order to retrace her footsteps.

And that was when she ran into him.

"Eeeeekkk!" Chihiro squealed as she practically leaped away from the stranger. Before her stood a balding man gazing at her behind large, owlish glasses. It wasn't long before she realized that he must be just another employee.

With a shaky grin, Chihiro asked, "Ah, sir, can you direct me to Miss Yubaba's office?"

Without a word, the man scampered past her. Utterly puzzled, Chihiro followed the man without questioning him. After several turns and different hallways, the man slowed to a dead stop in front of a large oak door with a golden plate.

In elaborate, cursive lettering was the name: _YUBABA_

"Yubaba…" Chihiro murmured. When she turned to thank the stranger for showing her Yubaba's office, there was no one in his place. Even after glancing left and right, he was nowhere to be seen.

With a shrug, Chihiro opened the door.

A gush of cold air brushed past Chihiro and before taking a step into the threshold, an icy, bitter voice barked, "Who's there! Who dares to enter my office without knocking?"

With a gulp, Chihiro entered Yubaba's office.

Completely unaware of the fateful events that would soon unravel before her…

TBC... (to be continued)

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AN: Yes, after putting this story on hiatus for about nine months, I've made a comeback! I think my style of writing has changed a lot during that time... Hopefully, the change is for the better. Hm... I think this chapterrevealeda lot more questions than answers, but hopefully, _some_ things have cleared up. 

Reviews, Flames, and Death Threats are all appreciated.

**Thanks for reading**


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